OnePlus 6 pre-orders are live on Avechi, availability begins on June 2

I’ll admit we don’t have much coverage of OnePlus devices on Android Kenya, but this doesn’t take away the fact that the Chinese smartphone vendor is one of the few that has the Kenyan smartphone buyer in mind. In case you haven’t heard much about it, the company’s products are nicknamed “flagship killer”. And so is the new OnePlus 6.

In OnePlus 6, you have a device that offers all you can dream of in a high-end smartphone, but at prices that will catch the attention of anyone still mulling over getting the Galaxy S9, Galaxy Note 8, Huawei Mate 10 or even the newer Huawei P20.

Unlike the outgoing OnePlus 5T, you are getting a device that is now closer to the Samsungs of this world thanks to an all-glass build that is protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5. The display screen has also grown bigger while keeping just about the same body size as its predecessor, but you’ll have to deal with the notch. On the brighter side, haters of the notch like yours truly will have the option to show or hide it via the settings menu, which is pretty mindful.

From the specs sheet above [linked], you’ll admit this is one of the best, if not the best the market has to offer. The company’s trademark Dash Charge is still here to ensure you don’t waste lots of time charging the 3300mAh battery on board. Although OnePlus says the phone is water resistant, nowhere has it mentioned any IP6X certification, so be careful not to drop it in water, but it should survive raindrops and splashes.

During the launch event which I was able to watch live on YouTube (you can also watch it here, but you might want to forward it to 1:18:43, which is where the actual event starts from), OnePlus said that the cameras on OnePlus 6 are better in low-light performance because the sensor of the main 16MP lens is bigger than the 5T. However, the secondary 20MP lens is the same as its predecessor.

OnePlus 6 comes preinstalled with Android 8.1 Oreo out of the box, which means you get Project Treble, too. Also, you can join the new Android P beta right after you unbox the phone. And yes, it supports Faiba’s 700MHz frequency.

OnePlus 6 price and availability

OnePlus 6 started selling in major markets across the globe on May 22 and while the brand hasn’t established an official channel for selling its products in Kenya, Avechi Kenya, as usual, has come to your rescue. The retailer has already availed OnePlus 6 for pre-orders and for those who will want to buy it outright, availability begins on June 2.

Now for the part you’ve all been waiting for, which also happens to be where the phrase “flagship killer” comes into play – the price. For the 6GB RAM and 64GB storage variant, Avechi wants you to part with Sh. 59,500 and for the 8GB RAM and 128GB storage variant, you pay Sh 66,500. If eying the 8GB RAM and 256GB storage variant, it will set you back Sh 73,500 and for the special Avengers edition, which also rocks 8GB RAM and 256GB storage, you get to part with Sh 77,500.

For the average Kenyan, these are still steep prices. But for anyone who feels a little hard-done-by the asking prices of the likes of Nokia 8 Sirocco, Samsung Galaxy S8, Galaxy S9, Galaxy Note 8 or even Apple’s iPhone X and iPhone 8, there’s no better escape route than the OnePlus 6.